Don't forget to enter the draw for the Coquitlam Express Flex Pass! The Junior A team gave us 5 flex passes to raffle, where each of them is good for 8 admissions to their games! To enter, all you have to do is to note down the book that your child has read on your child's class fundraising page. For some helpful tips to find out how to do this, checkout the Read-a-thon FAQ page. The winner will be drawn during the Wednesdaymorning fitness. (the deadline to get your entry in was supposed to be Sunday night, but I'll extend it to Monday night to accept any last minute entries)

If we reach our fundraising target, in addition to being able to fund the library for 4 years, there's another bonus (that the students are quite excited about): Mr. Mah, the school principal, has volunteered to have his head shaved at an assembly in front of all of the kids. (And he's going to let me film it so that I can share it with you!). Mr. Mah isn't shy about revealing his love for Star Wars, so I'm kinda wondering if after his head gets shaved if he's going to look like:

Whether you are in kindergarten running your first 2.5km run (Shaw mini run) or a teacher or parent running 10km (Sun Run), the largest running race in Vancouver is back on April 17th! Get your PR or train for your first long distance race. Join team Walton Elementary 2016 and get a Sun Run T-Shirt with your school name printed on it and set an example and get that New Years Resolution completed! Run or walk or do both and we'll see you at the finish!!!

Walton is part of the Dairyland Youth Division so anyone (whether they are connected to Walton or not) registering on team Walton Elementary will get the discount. Savings up to 25% if they act now! Any of your friends or family can take advantage of this discount. We will coordinate with them on how to pick up their package.

Below is the information and how they can sign up.

The Dairyland Youth Team Division still offers the best value for participants, an awesome selling point to attract members to join your team!

Early bird rate (valid until February 11, 2016) only $22 for youth (plus GST)

$35 for adults (plus GST) which is much less than the $49 individual rate

SUN RUN REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! Click here to join our team.Select: Join an Existing TeamOur Team Name is: Walton Elementary 2016

Sex talk, No sweat. For parents and children.During these open and informational sessions, children and parents alike will come to terms with sexual health, and understand how it fits into their world at this stage of their lives.

Children learn how their bodies change, and what those changes mean. Parents will discover how to easily overcome embarrassment when talking about sexual health, learn words and concepts that are easy to use, and leave well equipped to clearly answer the myriad of questions all children are sure to ask.​The workshops are light hearted, but deliver straight and current facts on how parents and children can work together to promote good decisions for a lifetime.

​Workshops to be held at WaltonThe PAC has arranged for Saleema Noon to provide workshops for parents and students at Walton Elementary. These are optional sessions held in the evening. If you are interested please read the session information below and sign up each child you wish to attend. Please note, seats are limited so sign up is required.

Happy New Year! We hope that you've all had a great break with the kids. If the kids got any books over the holidays they'll be all set to start the read-a-thon that's starting up today!

We're holding a read-a-thon this month with an aim to raise $12,000 for the school library. The school district's funding has been reduced over the years, and it's become a challenge to not only buy new books for the library, but to keep the existing ones in good repair as well. About 1500 books travel in and out of the library every week, so you can imagine the bumps and bruises they get. This fundraised money should fund the library for about 4 years. Here's where you can donate:https://chimp.net/groups/walton-read-a-thon

The students will come home with a log sheet stapled to the back of their planner today. They'll be asked to read for 15 minutes a day for every day this month, and colour in a star when they're done. Some teachers will include this reading time during their classroom activities, and will have gotten the kids to colour in the star. There are stars on the weekends too, so try to fit in some reading time for the kids. Schedules often get pretty busy, so don't worry if you miss a day - it's ok to make up the time later.

Once the kids finish reading a book, please log into your classroom's fundraising page, and list the book on the activity page. There are instructions here<http://www.waltonpac.ca/read-a-thon-faq.html>. You'll be able to see what the other students are reading (maybe your child will get a good lead on the next book!). Our supporters will also be able to see the effort the students are making as well.

Many thanks to our corporate sponsors that have agreed to match every dollar you donate with one of their own! A shout out to Cortney Lessard - Realtor, Church's Chicken, James Garbutt - Realtor, and Zac Jacobson (parent).

Lastly, make sure that you have fun with this. Have some fun reading - maybe it could even be a family activity. This is not just a fundraiser, but also a way for the kids to pick up some reading skills, and get involved in raising money for a cause that they are interested in.